The end-all, be-all in the NFL continues to revolve around the quarterback position. If you have one that's considered to be elite, well, you'll routinely be in the Super Bowl conversation. Being in the championship discourse, however, is a far cry from actually lifting the Lombardi Trophy. For that, the rest of the team enters the equation as championship squads need other star pillars to reach the mountaintop.
So, while we can simply pinpoint each team's quarterback as their most valuable player, we're going to cast the QBs off to the side for this exercise. Below, the non-quarterback MVPs for each AFC team in the 2026 season step forward.
AFC East
Buffalo Bills: WR DJ Moore
Buffalo has had a major hole atop its wide receiver depth chart essentially since trading Stefon Diggs. Over the last two seasons, they've ranked 21st in receptions, 23rd in receiving yards, and tied for 21st in receiving touchdowns among wide receivers. That lack of top talent at the position has lowered their ceiling amid Josh Allen's prime, but they've looked to fix that with the addition of DJ Moore. The Bills struck a deal with the Chicago Bears to acquire Moore, reuniting him with head coach Joe Brady, who was his offensive coordinator during their shared time with the Panthers (2020-21). Over that stretch, Moore averaged 1,175 receiving yards. If he can provide that level of play with Allen now throwing him the football, it should make Buffalo's offense that much tougher to defend.
New England Patriots: CB Christian Gonzalez
A new contract for Gonzalez is imminent, and Robert Kraft has already stated that the All-Pro corner will become the highest-paid player in team history. If the dollars and cents on a looming mega extension don't show how important Gonzalez is to New England's prospects in 2026, let's look at his on-field production. Last season, Gonzalez allowed just 44.9% of his targets against him as the primary defender in coverage to be completed. In the playoffs, that completion rate dropped to 36.7%, showing he elevated in the highest-pressure moments. If the Patriots want to get back to the Super Bowl, Gonzalez will be a major piece of the puzzle.
Miami Dolphins: RB De'Von Achane
The Dolphins offense has major questions after an offseason where the franchise overhauled the unit. Tua Tagovailoa, Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle are gone, and the keys of the offense under center are being handed to Malik Willis. One of the key holdovers from the previous regime, however, is De'Von Achane. The fourth-year running back has proven to be one of the more electrifying players in the entire NFL, possessing the ability to break off into the end zone with a single touch. He led the NFL with a 5.7 yards per carry average last season and posted a career-high 1,350 yards rushing during the regular season. What better way to help Willis as he embarks on his first season as the full-time starter in Miami than giving him the ability to hand it off to Achane, who can score in the blink of an eye?
New York Jets: EDGE David Bailey
New York is coming off a 2025 season in which the defense ranked at or near the bottom of the league in key categories. While most note that the Jets became the first team in NFL history to finish a season with zero interceptions, they also ranked 31st in total sacks (26) and dead last in pressure rate (28%). Naturally, those defensive inefficiencies forced New York to deploy a ton of resources on defense this offseason, including selecting Texas Tech edge rusher David Bailey with the No. 2 overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft. Bailey was tied for the most sacks (14.5) and had the second-most pressures (81) in FBS last season. New York hopes he can come in and immediately help claw this pass rush out of the basement.
AFC North
Pittsburgh Steelers: WR Michael Pittman Jr.
The Steelers' acquisition of Michael Pittman Jr. from the Colts is one of those moves that feels forgotten but will be quickly remembered once the regular season kicks off. Pittman is a pivotal answer to the No. 2 receiving question opposite DK Metcalf in Pittsburgh's offense. Last season, Metcalf led the team with 850 receiving yards. Meanwhile, the other Steelers receivers combined for just 866 yards receiving. Pittman comes in as not only a clear-cut second option for Aaron Rodgers, but the veteran quarterback (who averaged just 6.7 yards per attempt in 2025) could pepper the veteran on shorter routes. It wouldn't be surprising to see Pittman (who has the sixth-most receptions in the NFL over the last four seasons) lead the Steelers in targets.
Baltimore Ravens: EDGE Trey Hendrickson
The Ravens defense was mediocre in 2025, and a big reason why Jesse Minter was hired as head coach was to help restore Baltimore's reputation of having one of the toughest units in the league. One thing Minter will specifically need to focus on his getting that sack number up, as the Ravens were tied for the third-fewest sacks (28) in the league in 2025. To do that, they added Trey Hendrickson by signing the former Bengals edge rusher to a four-year, $112 million deal. Baltimore is looking for Hendrickson to bounce back from an injury-plagued 2025 season, where he was limited to just seven games due to a hip injury. Hendrickson has the third-most sacks (74.5) in the NFL since 2020, and it wasn't that long ago (2024) when he led the league with 17.5 sacks. If the Ravens get the 2024 version of Hendrickson, the defense will turn around overnight.
Cincinnati Bengals: DT Dexter Lawrence
Cincinnati pushed the No. 10 overall pick into the middle of the table this offseason to land All-Pro defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence in a trade with the Giants. This blockbuster was part of the Bengals' overarching offseason effort to elevate the defense to a more respectable level. In 2025, the unit ranked 30th in points per game allowed (28.9), 31st in yards per game allowed (380.9) and last in yards per play allowed (6.2). They also allowed the most rushing yards per game (147.1) and the second-most yards per rush (5.2) in the league last season. While the team did bring in other notable veterans, Lawrence is the linchpin to get this defense to play at a higher level. If they become an average unit, it could be enough given the firepower on the offensive side of the ball.
Cleveland Browns: CB Denzel Ward
All eyes in Cleveland are currently on who'll win the Week 1 job under center, and rightfully so. Whoever comes out on top, however, there will be plenty of pressure on the defense to not let games get out of hand and force them into a pass-heavy game script. That's where Ward comes in. The Browns just extended Ward to make him the highest-paid cornerback in the NFL by average annual value ($31.1 million), and it's easy to see why. He's just one of three corners to make the Pro Bowl in each of the past three seasons and is allowing a 51.5% completion rate over that stretch (third-lowest in the NFL). Ward also has an NFL-high 104 passes defended since entering the league in 2018. There's, of course, a giant hole left by edge rusher Myles Garrett, but Ward should continue to help keep this defense stout and take some of the burden off of the offense.
AFC South
Indianapolis Colts: RB Jonathan Taylor
Daniel Jones was a revelation over the first half of the 2025 season, but let's not ignore the fact that Jonathan Taylor was going nuclear in the process. Over the first 10 games of the season, Taylor was averaging 113.9 rushing yards per game on a 6.0 yards per carry clip. He also tallied 15 rushing touchdowns over that stretch. Yes, his numbers declined down the stretch in conjunction with Jones suffering a season-ending injury, but he still finished third in rushing yards and first in rushing touchdowns. Taylor is the straw that stirs the drink of this Indy offense.
Tennessee Titans: DT Jeffery Simmons
Tennessee's defense left little to be desired last season, allowing 27.6 points per game (31st in the NFL). That said, Jeffery Simmons was certainly not part of the problem. The star defensive tackle led his position group with 11.0 sacks in 2025 en route to being named first-team All-Pro for the first time in his career. The 29-year-old also signed a three-year, $105.8 million extension with the Titans that has him among the highest-paid players at his position. Naturally, the Titans' season will be judged by how Cam Ward and the new pieces on offense mesh, but Simmons should be central to Robert Saleh getting the defense back up and running.
Houston Texans: EDGE Will Anderson Jr.
Houston notched a 12-5 record and made the playoffs due to having arguably the best defense in the NFL. The unit was first in total yards allowed per game (277.2), second in points allowed per game (17.4), and third in takeaways (29). At the center of all that is edge rusher Will Anderson Jr., who became the highest-paid non-QB in the NFL this offseason with his $150 million extension. Anderson had the highest pressure rate (21%) in the NFL last season, while notching career highs in sacks (12) and tackles for loss (20). The former first-round pick's 50 pressures on third down last season were the most by any player in a season on record. C.J. Stroud returning to his rookie form will be what takes the Texans to a championship-caliber ceiling, but Anderson spearheading this defense gives them a solid floor.
Jacksonville Jaguars: EDGE Josh Hines-Allen
Jacksonville's offense took a step forward under Liam Coen last season, and the defense was also a borderline top-10 unit. In fact, they were tied for the sixth-most pressures in the NFL and a large part of that was thanks to Josh Hines-Allen. The Jags edge rusher tallied 95 pressures in 2025, which ranked second-highest in the NFL. Hines-Allen started getting home down the stretch as six of his eight sacks on the year came over Jacksonville's final eight games. If he can carry that momentum into 2026 and match the prolific play of the offense, the Jaguars could be looking at consecutive seasons as AFC South champions.
AFC West
Denver Broncos: EDGE Nik Bonitto
Denver's defense was superb at getting after the quarterback last season, leading the NFL with 68 sacks. Keeping the quarterback's head on a swivel helped them rank inside the top three in the league in points per game allowed (18.3), yards per game (278.2), and on third down (33.8% conversion rate). Spearheading that pass-rushing effort is Nik Bonitto, who notched 14 sacks in 2025 (fifth-most in the NFL). Over the last two seasons, only Myles Garrett has produced more sacks than Bonitto (37.0 vs. 27.5).
Las Vegas Raiders: TE Brock Bowers
At some point, the Raiders will hand the keys over to Fernando Mendoza. Who is oftentimes a rookie quarterback's best friend? The tight end. Bowers will not only be the security blanket for Mendoza whenever he's installed as QB1, but he's set to be a central piece to the passing attack under first-year head coach Klint Kubiak. Bowers had a disappointing sophomore season, but that was largely due to injury. Even accounting for the sluggish Year 2, Bowers has the third-most receiving yards by a tight end in his first two seasons all-time. Provided he stays healthy, he'll be one of the most-targeted weapons in the entire NFL.
Los Angeles Chargers: OT Rashawn Slater
You can apply this to both Slater and Joe Alt, as both starting tackles are equally important to the Chargers' success in 2026. Justin Herbert has been battered over the past few years, but none more than in 2025. Slater tore his patellar tendon in early August of 2025, which eliminated his entire season. That came mere days after signing a four-year, $114 million extension. When you compound his absence along with Joe Alt's after he went down with a season-ending ankle injury, you shouldn't be surprised to learn that Herbert endured 129 quarterback hits, which is tied for the second-most in the past 20 years. With Mike McDaniel installed as the new offensive coordinator, there's plenty of optimism for this group to become prolific. However, if they can't block for Herbert, it won't matter what McDaniel draws up; it will emphasize Slater and Alt's importance.
Kansas City Chiefs: RB Kenneth Walker III
Even before Patrick Mahomes went down with a season-ending ACL tear, the Chiefs offense felt tired. The unit lacked the typical explosiveness that we've grown accustomed to over the course of their dynasty. In an effort to inject new life into the offense and provide a more stable running game, K.C. signed Super Bowl MVP Kenneth Walker III in free agency. In 2025, Chiefs running backs ranked in the bottom five of the league in rushing yards, yards per rush, and tackles avoided. Walker should improve the backfield in all of those categories. Having an explosive back at his disposal is when Andy Reid-led offenses are running at their best, and they might have that now with Walker. If they get dependable play on the ground, that only helps Mahomes as he mounts his comeback from injury.
